QUANTITATIVE METHODS FOR BUSINESS DECISIONS

Credits Three (3)

Faculty Name Arun Kumar Paul (arun@ximb.ac.in)
Program Executive MBA 1 Yr Full-time; Elective from DS area
Academic Year and Term 2016-2017; Term 3 / Term 4

1. Course Description: Most of the successful business decisions rely on quantitative methods to
select potential alternatives and help predict what options will have the greatest chance of success.
Whether making purchasing, marketing or financing decisions, it is essential to obtain a quantitative
foundation to assist in the decision-making process. Objectives of the course are to provide a formal
quantitative approach to problem solving, to give an insight for managerial situations where a
quantitative approach is appropriate and conceptual understanding of the role that quantitative
methods play in the decision-making process. In addition, this course also introduces some widely
used Quantitative Models used for Business Decision.
2. Learning Objective: After completing this course, students should be able to:
learn popular quantitative tools and techniques used in decision making.
know quantitative models and their relevance in business situations.
apply suitable quantitative approaches in day to day operations.
3. Provisional Session Plan:
Session
Topic Description Remarks
No.
1,2 Problem formulation under constraints Linear, Non-linear
Multi-Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) Weighted
3,4 methods; AHP
5,6,7,8 LPP and its applications
Monte Carlo simulation decision with quantified
9,10 uncertainties
11,12 Data Envelopment Analysis Reading
13 Goal Programming materials, Cases
will be given to
14 Network models the students.
15,16 Waiting line models
17 Theory of Constraints
18 Game Theoretic approach
Multi-Attribute Utility Theory (MAUT); Interpretative Structural
19 Modeling (ISM)
20 Case study presentations; Group work presentations
As per agreed
Quiz, , Final Exam, Group / Case Presentations
schedule

Page 1 of 2
4. Group Work:
Practical / Application oriented: Applying concepts and tools learnt in the course, to a real-life
situation. (Submission: Hard copy (.doc + .xls) + soft copy (.doc, .xls, .ppt), on the day of Group
presentation)
Criteria of evaluation:
Choice of situation 5%
Definition of problem 10 %
Collection of data 15 %
Analysis of data,
use of tools 40 %
Suggested solution 20 %
Reporting 10 %

5. Evaluation Methodology (for the entire course):

a. Class Room Attendance & Participation : 10 %
b. Quiz -1 (Individual) : 15 %
c. Quiz -2 (Individual) : 20 %
d. Group Work + prsentation : 15 %
e. Final exam (Individual) : 40 %
TOTAL 100 %

6. Grading System, Academic Integrity: (to follow the Manual of Policies)

7. Reference, Bibliography:
Business Statistics for Contemporary Decision Making by Ken Black, Wiley India
Basic Econometrics by Damodar N. Gujarati, Mc Graw Hills
Multivariate Data Analysis, by Joseph F. Hair, Jr; William C. Black, Barry J. Babin and
Rolph E. Anderson, Prentice Hall
Quantitative Methods for Business by Anderson, Sweeney, Williams, Camm &
Martin, CENGAGE Learning
Data Analysis, Optimization, and Simulation Modeling by Albright, Zappe and Winston,
CENGAGE Learning
Quantitative Methods for Decision Making using Excel by Davis and Pecar, Oxford
University Press.

Page 2 of 2